Cherry Brown Butter Bars

I know this is late, but I made some amazing bars with these cherries the day I got back from Europe! These cherries may not look like anything much to you, but considering the kind of tiny cherries we get here in India, these were a real find. And I just knew I had to make something spectacular with them. I'd had my eyes on these bars from Deb's site since forever, so I chose to go with them. Anything that has Deb's endorsement, you just know it HAS to be heavenly!


I decided not to experiment too much, and just stick to the tried and trusted, having the fear of my precious cherries going waste in my mind. And thank the lord I didn't. Because these bars, were over-the-top AMAZING!! It took less than a day for these to get over, I barely had any pieces left for pictures! They taste pretty much like a clafoutis, but better, since the crust gives it an amazing texture and mouth-feel. Ofcourse, you can also make these in the tart form, following this recipe.





Cherry Brown Butter Bars
Adapted from Smitten Kitchen


I reduced the amount keeping in accordance with the amount of cherries I had, but I'm giving the actual amounts to you!


For the crust:
7 tbsp [100 g] unsalted butter, melted
1/3 cup [75 g] sugar
1/4 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup + 1 tbsp [160 g] flour
Pinch of salt


For the filling:
1/2 cup [115 g] sugar
2 large eggs
Pinch of salt
1/4 cup [35 g] flour
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, diced
1 pound sweet cherries, which will yield 12 ounces of pitted cherries plus leftovers (you could also use 12 oz of any other berry) (I used a little more, which is why mine is so berry-ful :p)



Instructions
For the Crust - 

1. Preheat oven to 375 F [180 C]. Grease and line a 8 inch square pan - It is important to line the pan, and possibly leave some overhang, if you want nice neat pieces.
   
2. In a small bowl, mix together the melted butter, sugar and vanilla. Add the flour and salt, and stir until incorporated, and a dough is formed.
3. Transfer dough to the prepared pan, and bake for around 18 minutes, or until golden brown.
4. Press the dough back down if it puffs up, and let it cool outside, while you prepare the filling.

For the Filling - 

1. In a saucepan, cook butter until it turns a deep dark brown, which takes around 5 minutes. Make sure to pay attention, and stir to avoid any burning. Once browned to your liking, pout into a medium glass bowl to prevent furthur browning.
2. Add the sugar, eggs, and vanilla to the butter, and mix well.
   
3. Mix in the flour and salt.
4. Arrange whatever berries you are using, on the cooled crust. Pour the filling evenly onto the fruit.
5. Bake for about 35-40 minutes, or until the filling is slightly risen, is golden brown, and a tester inserted comes out clean.
6. Cool bars in the pan, and then using parchment/foil, take the bars out and cut pieces as big/small as you want. My own preference is to cut them through the fruit, since it just adds to the visual appeal, but ofcourse, you could avoid them if they are giving you any sort of trouble.